Power-couple TV producers Robert and Michelle King said the inspiration for their latest series came from binge-watching Columbo during the Covid pandemic.

And the influence of the rumpled police detective, introduced in the 1970s and played by Peter Falk, on Elsbeth (Paramount+) isn’t difficult to detect. The creators of the legal drama The Good Wife (2009-16) and its first spin-off, The Good Fight (2017-22, both on Paramount+), have gone back to the future for their second one.

Elsbeth is sweetly old-fashioned, recalling the kinds of upbeat crime series that flourished during the ’70s and ’80s, shows such as The Rockford Files, Magnum P.I., Remington Steele and Hart to Hart, the types of productions that also inspired Rian Johnson with his 2023 effort, Poker Face (Stan).

Typically, they offer engaging central characters, self-contained episodic murder mysteries and the kinds of crimes that don’t keep viewers awake at night. Their stories operate like puzzles and the tone is almost cheery despite the fact that characters get killed. The victims are strategically deployed and readily disposable, like pawns in a chess game.

For their variation on the form, the Kings repurpose an occasional guest from their previous productions. Elsbeth Tascioni (Carrie Preston) is a lawyer whose deceptively flighty demeanour disguises her sharp mind, albeit one that operates from left field. By the second episode of Elsbeth, one of the cops she encounters captures her impact when he remarks: “I’ve heard that you’re smarter than you seem, but a bit of a weirdo.”

While Columbo has his shabby raincoat and half-smoked cigar, Elsbeth’s trademark style involves bright colours – pinks, oranges, floral prints – and she stands out like a sunflower amid the black police uniforms and glass towers of Manhattan. There are also her commodious tote bags, which enhance the impression of a nutty bag lady. As with Columbo, others’ underestimation of her becomes Elsbeth’s superpower, a disarming hidden weapon. And the way in which episodes are structured, the suspense doesn’t come from an investigation of whodunit, but from how she’ll collect clues to catch the killer.

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Preston has said that she sees the new show as a comedy and at times it evokes the spirit of Only Murders in the Building (Disney+). The series makes the most of the city as Elsbeth, an awed newcomer, is keen to catch the big Broadway musicals and see the sights. Like Columbo and Only Murders, it also has some fun with guest stars, with early episodes featuring Stephen Moyer, Jane Krakowski, Retta, Jesse Tyler Ferguson and Blair Underwood.

Elsbeth also exhibits a basic tenet for spin-offs, shifting the protagonist to a new setting. In the Cheers offshoot, Frasier – one of the great spin-offs – the pompous psychiatrist (Kelsey Grammer) moves to Seattle to host a radio show. In The Good Fight, Diane Lockhart (Christine Baranski) discovers that her retirement plans have been scuppered when her nest egg disappears in a Ponzi scheme, forcing her to return to work and prove her worth at a new firm. Elspeth moves to Manhattan to take on a role consulting for – and secretly spying on – the police.